Dumb Question About Minivans

Like others said, you can't. We bought a minivan when my oldest was 2 and my youngest was 5 months. They each got a carseat in one of the captain's chairs (2nd row). They were fine. Millions of mothers wouldn't drive minivans if they weren't!

You can't.

We just test drove a ton of them and decided on the Honda Odyssey because you can actually move the center seat in the second row "up" closer to the driver (among other things we liked about it).

Some minivans have a 2 seat center row. Some have a 3 seat center row. If that's important to you, then don't even bother looking at the other models!

I don't think you can. I think those are captain seats and there is no middle seat.

In the 2nd row? You don't.
We are expecting our 3rd this summer. We already have a minivan.
Baby will be behind dad/driver seat (because dad is very tall and has to have seat fully extended).
Toddler will stay rear facing behind mom (shotgun).
Big sis will sit in 3rd row, middle seat.

I completely understand the desire to keep infant in the middle...you could possibly put baby in the 3rd row (our van says only forward facing in the 3rd row).
I feel safer being in our van than I did our sedan, if that helps.
And the newer vans (ours is a '04) have side curtain airbags.

I would suggest getting the type that have the bench style seats for easier ading that in. My minivan has 2 rows of bench seats with me having 4 kids gives them extra room to stretch out or fit an extra kid or 2 in there

We just got a minivan this past week. It only has a middle bench seat that fits 2. In that scenario, I'd put infant closest to the middle.

If two captain's seats, you'd have to put a child in each seat.

But remember, vans are much wider than cars and those captains seats sit further in from the side of the vehicle unlike those that are in a car.

AND, vans sit higher up than cars do.

If you only have captain's seats, I'd put baby behind you (driver) for convenience.

Good luck mama. :)

I have a sienna. I always thought that in a van, the middle row was the safest place for babies and kids. Our middle row only has 2 seats that have a space between them to get to the 3rd row. I would just put the infant seat in that middle row instead of all the way in the back.

I have an Odyssey. The middle seat pops in or out. You cannot put a carseat in this seat, however.

My babies have never had their seats in the middle. It isn't an option in Honda's. I have high end carseats and I don't worry about it. I wouldn't get the benchseats because climbing in and out is much easier with the ability to remove the middle seat. It's nice to have the middle seat out, unless we need it.

Minivans ROCK, btw.

When there are only two seats you put the baby in one of them. There is no middle seat to use. My daughter's van is this way and it's not a problem. The seats themselves are wider and somewhat curved on the sides which adds extra protection.

My van has a bench seat in back but it's only two seats wide. You have to put one of the babies/toddler in the side seat. It really is not a problem. The babies are well protected even if the one is not in the "perfect" position.

Just realized. You've got either the baby or the toddler in an outside seat even if it's three seats. Cars are much more better built now then when the experts started making recommendations. Cars are built to better withstand sideways crashes.

We cannot be perfect. We do the best that we can. And.....it is only a recommendation that the baby's seat be placed in the middle. It is not a law.

Hmmmm. Someone mentioned side air bags. Are they safe with a baby or toddler in the side seat? Perhaps they can be turned off just as in some cars the front passenger one can be turned off when an older but still somewhat short child sits in that seat.

I found a site that said to ask the vehicle manufacturer about side airbags and how they work to determine safety to small children and babies. It also said that in general roof mounted bags are safe.

http://www.safercar.gov/staticfiles/safercar/pdf/811360.pdf

It all depends on the minivan. I have a Toyota Sienna and in the second row the middle seat is an option; the standard is to have two captain's chairs. We opted for the middle seat, which is removable and can also be positioned closer to the front seats (easier on mom and dad to reach back!). When my youngest was born we had no problem putting her infant seat in the middle of the middle row.

Are you talking about the middle row? I have a 2011 Honda Odyssey. I can fit three across in the middle row. I've never tried it in the back row, but I doubt that I could do it with an infant car seat.

I have my two toddlers in the outside seats. I have the baby in the infant seat in the middle. They fit just fine, but I can't access the back row unless someone climbs in through the back (trunk/tailgate thingy) or we remove one of the outside car seats so we can slide the seat forward and let the extra passenger inside.

Keep in mind that my two toddler car seats are Sunshine Radian car seats. They are narrower and have a lower profile. It is so much easier for me to hoist the infant car seat over the Radian and into the base rather than trying to lift it over a Britax Marathon (which I also have but stopped using for this reason). Good luck! You might want to trying fitting all the car seats into any car you test drive before you buy.

Depends on the van and the seat configuration. If we have 2 carseats in the van (usually for a guest), and the seats don't fit, we put them in different rows, with the smaller child being in the center of the van. You can also look up carseats and see what ones fit best in what van. If you need to have them both in the same row, look for a 3 seat bench.